Monday, November 23, 2015

9 Ways To Die In Las Vegas

"Catwoman"
After the events of "The Knight in Wonderland", Selina Kyle-the master thief known as Catwoman-and her fateful companion Holly Robinson have moved out of Gotham at the request of Batman and as an attempt to cheer themselves up after their horrific experience with The Mad Hatter. They decide to go somewhere like Gotham, but brighter: Las Vegas. During the train ride to Vegas, Selina tells Holly about how Selina got to where she is, this allows us to see her backstory of having abusive parents and being put in an orphanage with her sister, Maggie. Maggie got adopted, but Selina was a bad egg and escaped onto the streets of Gotham, where she was a criminal, a prostitute, and later-after meeting Holly and seeing Batman on the news-Selina would become Catwoman and steal for herself and for those underprivileged. While we see this gritty, uncomfortably real look at her backstory, Selina tells it to Holly in a way that makes it sound not so dark.
While in Vegas, Selina meets characters like former Gotham/Vegas cop Slam Bradley Junior, boxer Ted Grant, a nun named Margot, and former crime boss Carmine Falconi. Ted Grant is a former heavyweight boxer and a former vigilante known as Wildcat, he had trained the likes of Batman, Catowoman and others, so Selina has Holly train under Ted to learn self-defense. Selina-as Catwoman-runs into Margot and talks to her as a way to vent her emotions, she doesn't know how to help Holly any further or if she can even do anything independently after Mad Hatter's hypnotism. During one these trips, Catwoman finds Margot being murdered by a woman calling herself Magpie. After a brief fight, Magpie seemingly kills Catwoman. Selina is woken up by Ted and Holly later and finds out from Slam Bradley who Magpie is. Magpie is a criminal who's diagnosed with schizophrenia, amnesia and multiple personality disorder, she used to be a woman named Margaret Pine who stole, assaulted and mimicked anyone she felt threatened by. As time went on she targeted people she found interesting, but every time the police try to arrest her she would change her identity and hide amongst the Vegas crowd.
Going to Margaret's former psychiatrist, Selina and Slam get some clues as to where to look, but Selina also learns why she thought she had died. Through hypnosis, Slam and the doctor find out The Mad Hatter left one last subliminal command in Selina's mind: die nine times. The doctor believes Selina will enter a state of "believed death" eight more times before she won't wake up. The Vegas PD arrest Slam and chase Catwoman when it's announced Catwoman has stolen priceless jewels from a museum and even killed a night guard. Selina knows she didn't do it and knows she doesn't take lives so easily, so she runs into an impostor Catwoman who is actually Magpie. Yet again, there fight ends with Selina "dying" and being taken by the police. The cops taking her in deliver her Carmine Falcone, who's mob influence gives him some control of the police. He cannot stop the police from investigating Holly, Slam and Ted, though. Since she is a minor, Holly is released from police custody and kidnapped by Magpie/Catwoman. Magpie thinks that Holly is her best friend because of her mimicking of Selina's personality and Holly has a hard time separating the two of them.
Meanwhile, Carmine tells Selina that Magpie has been a troublemaker in Vegas for many years and has a knack at mimicking people to the fullest. Catwoman puts it together that Magpie would go after Holly and runs off before Carmine can explain more. Holly watches as both Catwomen fight, and when one kills the other Holly uses a her training to punch the winning Catwoman unconscious. Turns out she punched Magpie and Catwoman-yet again-thought she died. Selina looks over Magpie and recognizes her from somewhere, but the police show up and believe Catwoman has murdered another woman and kidnapped Holly. When they back to their stolen apartment, Holly treats Selina's wounds as she loses "her fourth life". Carmine shows up and tells Selina the truth, that Magpie is actually her sister Maggie Kyle. After she was adopted into the Pine Family, Maggie tried to work as a therapist. She treated soldiers, scientists, gymnasts and all other interesting people and wrote all her experiences down to share with her family, Carmine had been intercepting these writings because-as Selina has tried to ignore-Carmine is their father. Carmine always liked Maggie more, which is why after Maggie was emotionally and physically abused by her then-girlfriend, Carmine had the girl assassinated and it drove Maggie crazy. She believed she was weak and developed personalities based on the people she had met, with the traits she picked up from her patients Maggie became Magpie and murdered people to collect more personalities and bury Maggie further. Carmine used his influences to keep her out of prisons and looney bins, ashamed that his daughter became a masked criminal.
With a rare treasure called The Jade Tiger coming to The Vegas Art Museum in a few days, Selina believes Magpie will try to steal it (as that's what Catwoman would do). Holly reminds Selina that Magpie is so more skilled as a thief and a fighter because of the traits she's collected, Selina might not stand a chance. Selina makes a few calls. The next day, Selina and Holly go the airport and meet up with Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. When Holly asks how Selina met these two Gotham criminals, we get a brief flashback to them robbing a shopping mall and being chased out by Batman and Robin. Harley and Selina also make teasing regards towards their respective love interests.
Catwoman asks Harley and Ivy to help her steal the Jade Tiger and apprehend Magpie as a favor, but first they need to plan out the break-in to The Vegas Art Museum, which is highly secured. After organizing a plan, Selina brings up the other issue of her "five lives left" situation. Since Holly is too squeamish, Harley and Ivy "kill" Selina four more times so that her "believed death" issue won't get in the way.
The plan is set into motion. Poison Ivy seduces the camera operator as Catwoman climbs up the side of the building. Ivy orders the camera operator to call a chemical hazard in the building so all the cleaning crewmen evacuate and Harley-dressed in a haz-mat suit-escorts the men out of the building. From the computer room Ivy turns off all the alarms and security systems, looping camera footage too. It appears Magpie has broken into the museum using the ventilation shaft and approached the Jade Tiger, but Catwoman falls out of the shaft behind her. Magpie brags that she knew Catwoman would use that trick, but it turns out Harley Quinn was disguised as Catwoman to distract Magpie as the real Catwoman used an Poison Ivy's vines and an elevator shaft to enter the room and take the Jade Tiger. Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn and Magpie fight over the Tiger throughout the museum. Magpie defeats Harley and uses chemical spray to hurt Ivy, then she takes Catwoman's last life and goes for the Tiger. In her last "believed death" Selina reveals that she is Maggie's sister. This distracts Magpie long enough for Holly to swoop in and hit over the head with the Jade Tiger.
Selina's voiceover tells us what happened after, with scenes showing Selina sitting down with Magpie in an interrogation room and snapping her out of her criminal persona, they embrace and Maggie accepts her place in asylum. Selina checked with Slam and the cops to make sure her two accomplices get off free and Maggie will be helped at a good, safe, "not-Arkham" Asylum. The psychiatrist from before confirmed the "nine lives" command to be out of Selina's mind. Selina is telling all this to Carmine Falconi, who is upset over Maggie's incarceration. Selina assures that if Carmine tries to mess her or Maggie's lives again, she will kill him. As she leaves, Vegas police swarm Carmine's penthouse and arrest him and the dirty cops on the force.
Selina and Holly meet Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy at the airport ready to say goodbye, but Selina suggests one more night in Vegas. Holly shows Selina a suit she made with Ted and says Ted gave her the name "Wildcat". So, Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy and Wildcat spend one more night in Vegas, stealing and destroying whatever seems fun to steal or destroy, this is followed by the credit sequence which features photos taken of their night in Vegas.
After the credits, Alfred Pennyworth awakes in the Wayne Industries Penthouse after hearing a noise, he spots a broken window just as he is knocked unconscious. Bruce Wayne turns on the light to attack the intruder, but it turns out to be Selina Kyle. While Bruce implies she will need to clean the glass up and apologize, Selina is more concerned with celebrating her return as she kisses Bruce and turns off the light.
Thank you for reading!
Gear up and get ready for "Doom Patrol".

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